junglebreath:

Keep your opinions to yourself

Well pardon me for taking time to answer your question. How this forum works is that people ask questions and others post answers. If you don't want any opinions, you shouldn't post any questions.

You did make a mistake in your post using the word "need", but I would hope that my post didn't come over as biting your head off for it.

I stand by my statement that kids can have as much fun with a PC and a few add ons as they can with the latest games console that "everyone" at school has got. All games consoles (and more so with Microsoft ones) tie you in to only being able to buy a limited range of software and add-ons - the internet subscription being an example - and they only play games of course. A PC can do anything that a games console can do and much much more. You can connect for free to gaming servers, if that is your wish, you can upgrade and reconfigure at will. PC accessories are likely to plug into any computer and the available range is huge.

Games consoles divide the hobby into Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, etc. There is very little cross-compatibility and each model will be out of date in a few years. They are all lots of fun to use though and I will gladly spend £20 on one when that time comes, Maybe it doesn't have the same kudos for kids to say "come and play with my PC" and if it's kudos you want, then you have to pay for it.

All parents have seen their kids in the shops. As soon as they can speak they are wanting to buy any and every bit of rubbish with a picture of a teddy bear on the box. Some parents try to teach their kids that only some of the pretty boxes are worth buying, other parents try to buy as many pretty boxes as they can.

It is fine with me if your opinion is that an Xbox is better than a PC. I don't agree with your opinion but I am not going to insult you because of it.

Thanks Fnarr. Very helpul. Unlike Max.

Max, for your informationm I asked for some assistance regarding a game of fun for my son.

If I had wanted any misguided advice on how to entertain my childeren i WOULD HAVE GONE ELSEWHERE..... What fun it must be in your house..... Did your children get an orange in a sock from Santa Claus this year. Keep your opinions to yourself if you choose to answer with such nonsense in future..... Good Lord Victorian dad....

Xbox live gold subscription, shop around for best deals.

Depends how you want to connect up the xbox what hardware you need.

Could use wireless adapter as mentioned or connect xbox direct to router or via cable to a pc which has internet access via wireless or ethernet and bridge the connections.

Your existing router should work fine, just google xbox live and the make/model of your router for setup instructions or check here and here

Skywalker:Max, clearly you don't have kids! If the boy's mates come around, and see that he's playing with a £10 playstation he will be a laughing stock! Not very good for his self esteem. It shouldn't work like that - but sadly it does.

What nonsense. I do have kids and they do have a PlayStation 1 (although we bought it when they were £20). They are the envy of every visiting kid's parents when the PlayStation 1 comes out and they all happily play with the old games. They've been promised whatever is currently the "in" console when they are "out" and can be bought for £20. They do have access to PCs which are infinitely more flexible than any games console.

You are a marketing man's dream SW.

In order for your sons xbox to pick up the wireless signal from the router you will need to buy the wireless addon for the xbox which costs around £40 - £60 then you need to buy membership for xbox live (the online service) which costs can vary depending on how you want to pay for it, I think mine is £8.99 a month if paying monthly by credit card. But you can buy codes in GAME etc.

Seems very pointless seeing as PS3 offer everything for free on theirs (or so i've heard).

junglebreath:

What do I ACTUALLY need?

"Need" is a funny word. What you actually need is something less than a £10 PlayStation 1.

If you want to play the games in your front room with friends, you just need the console and a few games. If you want to stay in your front room and play games with your friends (or with strangers) while they are in their front rooms, then yes, you need a router to connect to the internet and, depending on the games, a subscription to a gaming service (but there are also many free gaming servers). Some games use a lot of bandwidth which can become expensive.

It's one of those hobbies where you can spend as much or as little money as you like.

Hi there, I have all my TV/internet and phone with SKY. I have purchased an X BOX 360 for my son and now find I have to buy some "add-ons" by way of connecting to the internet to play games with his friends. A router and a membership which togethjer cost about a hundred pounds more. Apart from NOT being told any of this when I bought it,.......

What do I ACTUALLY need? I already have a wireless router with SKY which works perfectly well with my laptop.

I am not very 'tecky' and have only really learned the phrasology above from my son.

Thanks in advance for your assistance and guidance.

JG